Know No Evil
by texan csi
Summary: Sara and Nick investigate a kidnapping, but first they have to figure out who was kidnapped.


Sara Sidle stepped out of her SUV and stretched. Normal people in regular cities would go to bed at this time of night. Sara was not a normal person, she was a CSI. And Las Vegas was definitely not a regular city, it was, well, Vegas. Night clubs and casinos greeted the night like she did, just with brighter lights, more noise, and significantly less coffee.

Sara clutched her coffee like the lifesaver it was and headed for the door. She had her hand on the door when Warrick's Tahoe flew into the parking lot, followed closely by a swerving car. Both vehicles stopped and sat quietly for a few silent moments. Then a woman jumped out of the car, visibly upset.

When it became apparent that she was venting her irritation on the car itself, Warrick stepped out of his Tahoe. Sara ambled over. So far, this was far more interesting than the paperwork she knew was waiting for her inside.

"Miss, are you alright?" Warrick asked, approaching slowly. The woman ignored him. "Hey?"

Sara figured the woman was in her early twenties, the wrong age to be able to ignore any guy like Warrick. But, the fact remained that her attention was firmly fixed on the car she'd just gotten out of. She was about to kneel next to it when Warrick moved into her peripheral vision.

"Eeee!" she yelped, jumping up.

"Sorry…"

The woman responded with a rush of signs. _Sign language?_

"Do you understand any of this?" Sara asked. Warrick just shook his head. Even more frustrated, the stranger switched to elaborate pantomime.

"Driving here…" Sara felt like she was playing charades. "I'm still in the dark."

The stranger pointed and fired an imaginary gun.

"I'm suddenly intrigued." Sara commented. "Let's find Grissom."

"There's a crime in our parking lot?" Catherine looked up at Nick disbelievingly.

"Yeah, Warrick was coming back from his crime scene, and another crime scene followed him back. Just like a stray dog," Nick grinned. "Grissom is interviewing the witness. Or she's interrogating him. It's hard to tell."

Catherine raised an eyebrow and set off in search of Grissom.

Catherine found Grissom in his office. She also found a young woman curled up into an impossibly small ball in one of his chairs. The woman was, despite her uncomfortable-looking position, relaxed and reading a technical forensics text.

"Gil?"

He looked up. "Catherine, tell me what you think of this."

Catherine allowed herself to be distracted by the letter Grissom was studying. "A ransom note without the ransom request?" she commented after a moment. "Where did you get it?"

"Brenna Mathews brought it in." Gil waved a hand towards the woman. Brenna saw it and looked up. Noticing Catherine, she shot an uncertain look at Grissom. He signed to her briefly.

Brenna smiled, uncurled gracefully, and stood up to shake Catherine's hand. Then Brenna signed enthusiastically to Grissom.

"What's she saying?"

"She just found out how long it takes for blood to separate, but she still isn't sure if luminal detects all blood, or just human blood."

"Why don't you just tell her?"

"That was question 314. If it distracts her long enough, I might not have to deal with number 315."

"Someone else could keep an eye on her," Catherine suggested.

"She's not a problem," Grissom said, eyeing the note again.

Catherine smirked. "And she is kinda cute. I didn't think she was your type, but, hey, whatever. Good luck…with the note." Grissom just shook his head as Catherine walked out.

_What did she think about the letter?_ Brenna signed.

Grissom read it again. "Your boyfriend will die if you go to the police. Wait and see." _Are you sure this was meant for you?_

_No._ Brenna looked uncertain. _Well, the man that gave it to me said my name, I think. But I'm not dating anyone. I haven't dated for a year._

_Is there anyone who might be mistaken as your boyfriend?_

_Andrew White, maybe. We've been good friends for a long time. Do you think he's…_Brenna just let her hands drop.

_We'll call him to make sure he's okay._

_Thank you, Gil._

"Hey, Greg, we've got a shooting. You're with me," Sophia said.

"Well, looks like I officially have better things to do than talk to you two." Greg teased Nick and Sara before bolting out of the layout room. Sara just groaned.

"It's not that bad," Nick tried to comfort her.

"All I need is a case. Any case." She pushed through the obnoxious paperwork in front of her. "Or some sugar."

"Or a case involving sugar?"

"I'd destroy the evidence," Sara managed to smile a little at the thought.

Nick grinned and immediately yawned. "Well, as much as I love talking to ya, I need to eat and get some sleep. Hey, why don't you walk out with me? Fresh air is supposed to be a good thing."

"Sounds better than this." She pushed back her chair and joined him. They strolled out, stopping by Catherine's office to say goodnight and by the locker room to grab Nick's stuff. Sara had a feeling Nick was taking his time so that she would have more of a break, but she didn't mind.

"What happened with the Mathews case?" he asked her.

"Looks like it was probably a prank. Her quasi-boyfriend is safe at home, so she's just making a statement to the police, and she'll probably be leaving soon." Sara walked through the door Nick was holding open. The night air was refreshing, actually.

"I don't remember pulling pranks as mean as this. I mean, you can mess with my head, but don't touch my car," Nick joked.

"What?" Sara stared at Brenna's car. "Oh my god. That wasn't there an hour ago."

Spray-painted across the small, blue car were white letters saying, "Paul dies."


End file.
